Oil surges, stocks slide as Trump says Iran ceasefire over
US President Donald Trump said the US-Iran ceasefire was “over”, sending oil prices higher amid fears of supply disruptions.
Options traders Serge Marinovich, left, and Phil Phil Fracassini work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, Jun 26, 2026. (Photo: AP/Richard Drew)
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
NEW YORK: Oil prices briefly soared back above US$80 per barrel while stock markets slid Wednesday (Jul 8), after US President Donald Trump said Washington’s ceasefire with Iran was over following renewed strikes in the Middle East.
The latest bout of fighting was sparked by Iranian attacks on ships in the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping route, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas transited before the war.
Trump said at a NATO summit in Türkiye the ceasefire was “over,” although he left the door open to more talks.
The markets responded, with oil shooting back up again after easing in recent days.
International benchmark Brent North Sea crude jumped 8 per cent to US$80.12 per barrel around 3:20pm GMT (11:20pm, Singapore time), before giving up some of those gains.
Meanwhile, the benchmark US oil contract, the West Texas Intermediate, gained 4.4 per cent to US$73.52 per barrel.
The prospect of a renewed blockade of the Strait of Hormuz led to a sea of red on equity trading screens in markets across the world.
“The looming resumption of war between the US and Iran, or at least a fresh blockade of the latter, has driven a wave of selling in European markets that are heavily exposed to higher energy costs,” said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading and investing platform IG.
Paris and Frankfurt both ended the day down more than two percent, while London dropped 1.6 per cent.
On Wall Street, the Dow closed 1.1 per cent lower while the S&P 500 lost 0.3 per cent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite crept up by 0.2 per cent.
“Geopolitical risks are rising” for markets, noted Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB.
Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst with Forex.com, was even blunter.
“After a long and eventful first half of the year dominated by the US-Israel war on Iran and Trump’s constant flip-flopping, the last thing investors, and frankly anyone else, needed with the summer holidays approaching was a return of the same geopolitical environment,” he said.
“Unfortunately, it looks like we could be heading back to that.”
The United States launched extensive strikes on Iran this week following attacks on ships in the strait, triggering a wave of reprisals against American bases in the Gulf.
Washington also revoked a temporary sanctions waiver for Iranian oil.
Equities in Asia suffered, with the geopolitical tensions coming on top of a retreat from the tech sector amid concerns over the eye-watering sums being invested in AI.
Seoul’s Kospi – which has been Asia’s poster child for the tech rally – sank more than five per cent and has lost more than 20 per cent since hitting a record high last month.
Samsung took another hit following a rout Tuesday that came despite the firm forecasting a roughly 19-fold jump in second-quarter operating profit from a year earlier on the back of strong AI chip demand.
The company and rival SK hynix both tumbled around six per cent.
“Investors have been spooked in recent weeks by fears of excessive spending in the AI world and rich valuations in parts of the tech space, causing widespread profit-taking,” said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.
Source: AFP/fs
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
About The Author
